Safety programs for the feed industry: characterization and perceived benefits of the implementation

Abstract This article aimed to analyze the internal and external perceived benefits of the implementation of GMP and HACCP in factories of the feed industry, and the difficulties perceived during deployment. A survey research was conducted through a questionnaire which was sent to the companies. Sixty units responded the questionnaire. Descriptive statistics, correlation tests and clusters were applied for data analysis. The cluster analysis identified three groups of companies, which differed from each other mainly by their size and certification of food safety standards. While product quality is a general requirement of the sector, the understanding that the adoption of programs to guarantee food safety is important for the quality of feed provided to the animals and essential for the quality of food of animal origin (meat, milk, eggs) does not seem to be a unanimous perception of the industry, considering that 26.7% of the sample does not apply the HACCP yet and only 50.0% has some certification related to food safety. It was observed that the units that supply the most demanding markets tend to adopt these programs and their certification. The main internal benefits reported after the implementation of GMP/HACCP were reduction of food safety related problems and improvement of the level of training of production employees. As for external benefits, the most cited were improved brand image and customer satisfaction.